Dogs sometimes experience seizures

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Monterey County Herald

Dr. Suzy Hochgesang Happy Tails
Q: My 4-year-old dog had a seizure yesterday that lasted about 5 minutes. She's acting fine today, but it really scared me when she was having the seizure. What do you think could be the cause? Should I take her to my vet right away?

A: Seizures are actually a fairly common problem among dogs. Depending on the literature that you read, it is estimated that 0.5 percent to 3 percent of all dogs will have at least one seizure during their lifetime. Although some breeds seem to be overrepresented, dogs of all breeds, including mixed breeds, can have seizures.

There are many causes of seizures, including problems inside the brain, metabolic abnormalities, liver problems and poisonings. It is not uncommon for a dog to have a seizure once and never again; for these dogs, sometimes a cause is never determined.

Seizures can also range widely in severity. The symptoms of "petit mal" seizures are usually confusion or impaired consciousness, localized muscle twitches or shaking for short periods of time.

Dogs suffering through a "grand mal" seizure will usually lose consciousness, collapse and often begin convulsing violently, paddling their legs, chattering their jaws and vocalizing; they may also lose control of their bladder and bowels.

Having witnessed many dogs having seizures, I know that grand mal episodes can be very frightening for the dog and owner alike.

So what should you do if your dog has a seizure? First, resist the temptation to hold and comfort your dog. During a seizure, your dog is not conscious and may act aggressively toward you. It is an old wives' tale that dogs can swallow their tongues during a seizure, so never put your hands inside your dog's mouth while she is having a seizure, as I have seen many owners suffer bite wounds trying to grab hold of their dog's tongue.

Instead, make sure your dog is in a place where she can't fall down a flight of stairs, hit sharp edges of furniture or otherwise injure herself. Because many seizuring animals are extremely sensitive to external stimuli, turn off any bright lights, the TV or stereo and speak quietly until your dog has completed the seizure.

If you have a watch on or are near a clock when your pet begins to seizure, make note of exactly when the seizure starts and finishes. Because seizures can be so scary, it often seems like they last 15 or 20 minutes when in actuality they may have only lasted a few minutes.

Only when your pet has stopped seizuring and seems more responsive should you carefully approach her and try to comfort her. There is usually a period after a seizure where your dog may still seem confused and may not behave reliably, so be careful. This post-seizure period can last anywhere from a few minutes to several hours.

Some seizures are followed immediately by another seizure, and these clusters of seizures are called status epilepticus. This condition is a medical emergency and you should take your dog to your vet as soon as possible for aggressive treatment. If you are able to time your dog's seizure and it lasts longer than 5 minutes, you should also take your dog immediately to your vet for care.

Any time your dog has a seizure, you should call your vet or the emergency clinic and describe what you have seen. Your vet will probably ask you about the type of seizure, the length of the seizure and general questions about your dog's history. Depending on the situation, your vet will advise you to bring your dog in immediately or to monitor your dog at home.

Like your dog, most pets that have a seizure seem to recover completely within a relatively short period of time. Even if this is the case, you should consult your veterinarian to determine the cause of the seizures and whether treatment is necessary. If seizures are not controlled, they can become more severe and more frequent.

Once at your vet's office, your vet will probably ask you more questions about your dog's history and will most likely recommend blood work to try to determine the cause of the seizures. If the results of the blood work and other tests show that the seizures are secondary to an underlying metabolic or liver problem, the treatment is directed at correcting the primary problem in order to allow the seizures to resolve on their own.

If your vet determines that the cause of the seizures is a problem inside the brain, such as epilepsy, he or she may choose to start your dog on anticonvulsant therapy. The most common anticonvulsant drug used in veterinary medicine is oral Phenobarbital, usually given once or twice daily. In many cases, Phenobarbital greatly reduces the frequency and severity of seizures in dogs.